Sewage bubbling up through manhole on Tullamore street being investigated by Irish Water

A PROBLEM with sewage bubbling up through a manhole on Callary St in Tullamore every time there is heavy rain is being investigated by Irish Water.

The problem has been ongoing for over 30 years but has worsened in the past decade following the construction of a large number of houses in the area.

Irish Water have now sent survey forms to residents of the affected areas of Callary St and adjoining Convent View, on the banks of the Grand Canal in the town centre, to gather property specific information which will assist them in their investigations.

Irish Water have asked residents to inform them or any sewer flooding incidents, internal or external, which have affected their property or a property in close proximity to them.

“One of the most important pieces of information is the date on which an previous flooding incidents may have occurred,” said a statement from Irish Water.

Local Fianna Fail TD Barry Cowen visited the area last year in the aftermath of torrential rain which resulted in sewage overflowing onto Callary St.

Deputy Cowen, after speaking with local residents, called for an immediate resolution to the problem.

Waste water had bubbled up through a manhole on the public footpath while the road was extensively flooded posing a hazard to motorists.

Kevin Murtagh, who lives with his family at Callary St, told Deputy Cowen and Cllr Declan Harvey that “every time it rains heavily this stuff comes up.”

He said residents, many of whom were elderly, had been calling for action for years but “had given up the ghost” in despair.

Mr Murtagh added that the pipe under the canal was too small to take all sewage and waste water from the area where a large number of new houses had been built in recent years.

Deputy Cowen said the time for stop-gap measures had ended and called on Irish Water to take immediate steps to solve the problem.

He said that the overflowing of sewage and waste water posed a health hazard to residents and all those using the canal amenity.

“Cllr Harvey has raised this on many times at council level and the stop-gap measure appears to be to flush the pipe out,” added Deputy Cowen.

Cllr Harvey said Offaly County Council had been proactive in ensuring drainage companies were on hand to alleviate the situation almost immediately when it occurred but this was not a long term solution to the problem.

Discussing the issue at a meeting of Tullamore Municipal District Cllr Sean O’Brien said the Callary St and Tyrell's Road [Convent View] issue was another example of over-centralisation leading to poor services locally.

“We [the council] had great experience here locally,” he stressed adding that Irish Water didn’t have the local knowledge needed to deal with problems.